The Audicle: A Context-Sensitive, On-the-fly Audio Programming Environ/mentality
Ge Wang, Perry R. Cook · 2004
Many software environments have been developed for computer music. Programming environments typically provide constructs to implement synthesis or musical algorithms, whereas runtime environments allow performers to exert parametric control over their programs onstage, in real-time. We present a new type of audio programming environment that integrates the programmability of the development environment with elements of the runtime environment. The result, called the Audicle, is a novel integration of a concurrent “smart” editor, compiler, virtual machine, and debugger, all running in the same address space, sharing data, and working together at runtime. We believe this augmentation has the potential to fundamentally enhance the way we write and visualize audio programs both offline and on-the-fly. In this paper, we examine existing programming and runtime environments, present the ideas behind the Audicle, and demonstrate its features and properties. Our model of the Audicle is integrated with the ChucK programming language and inherits many of its fundamental properties, including: decoupling of data-flow and time, concurrency, and modularity for on-the-fly programming. We discuss the main components of the Audicle, and show that it not only provides a useful class of programming tools for real-time composition and performances, but also motivates a new type of on-the-fly programming aesthetic – one of visualizing the audio programming process. 1.